Now this was a mainstream country album I was looking forward to listening to. The lead single (also the title track) had really caught my attention back in December for its stronger, more traditional country sound (hello accordion), and its deep and introspective lyric about an alcoholic only considering getting clean because he’s afraid of meeting Jesus with whiskey on his breath. It stopped me in my tracks because I was used to hearing the fairly bland, country pop tropes of ‘Angel Eyes’, ‘Night That You’ll Never Forget’ and ‘Runaway’ from the pretty-boy duo, and had largely ignored them ever since I left my teenage years behind. This track, though, was different; it was dark, it was interesting, and it was far more in touch with its country roots than Love and Theft had ever alluded to before. If this song was any indication of the forthcoming record, I reasoned (and lead singles often are), then it would be a game-changer for how the pair were perceived, particularly seeing as they named the album after this track.
So when Country Weekly announced they were streaming the 11-song album a week ahead of release, I jumped on the opportunity to get a good listen. The record reportedly was born out of them losing their contract with RCA Nashville after a few stalling singles, and going ahead independently with a collection of songs they had written but not recorded over the years. They started up under the amusingly-titled Hate & Purchase Music (the opposite of Love and Theft), and supposedly made an album exactly the way they wanted to. It probably won’t be a big commercial hit, just for the lack of label funding that would enable them to climb the tiers at radio.
Unfortunately, this album was not the one I was expecting (and hoping for). It certainly had some thoughtful moments, and ‘Everybody Drives Drunk’ was a particular highlight that explores the dark side of humanity, including depression, cheating and disappointment, on top of a rather moody and atmospheric sonic base. ‘Wrong Baby Wrong’ was also a decent rendition (especially considering they wrote the Martina McBride-recorded hit), adding touches of soul and rock ‘n’ roll to the lyric assuring a woman that she’ll get over this heartbreak in time. But the other eight tracks left quite a bit to be desired, and were more reflective of the music we know them for. The collection starts with the party-orientated, southern rock-inspired ‘Can’t Wait For The Weekend’, a hook-focused number about starting the weekend early. It moves on to the pop/R&B of ‘Anytime Anywhere’, a fairly bland love song that despite having a pretty melody on the chorus is pretty forgettable.
And that seems to be the blueprint for this whole record. Party songs, and wholesome love songs. I don’t know if you could call any of it bro-country, so at least there’s that, but after hearing the title track songs like ‘Can’t Stop Smiling’, a summery acoustic pop song about being happy in love, come off pretty disappointing. I suppose they have a fanbase to appease and there’s nothing wrong with having good-timin’ songs on a record, but in moderation. ‘Hang Out Hungover’, for example, is as boring and copycat pop as most of country radio, and the duo’s knack for crafting catchy hooks doesn’t save it from being pretty unremarkable. Just as the slide guitar at the beginning of ‘Easy’ doesn’t make-up for an uninspiring pop/rock summer song about easy love, and their similarity to Rascal Flatts on ‘Like I Feel It’ doesn’t make the song a bonafide hit (and the auto-tune?! What were they thinking?!).
I hate to be down on this record because they seem like genuinely nice guys and I do like a small handful of the songs. ‘Let’s Get Drunk And Make Friends’, for example, has its merits, with a comedy swagger and a roughened up swing-country style making it an enjoyable end to the album, while the west coast ska-inspired pop of ‘Tan Lines’ provides it with a pleasant listening experience regardless of the fairly moronic lyrics.
So should you buy this album? It depends. If you liked Love and Theft’s previous efforts then there’s a good chance you’ll like this, as despite everything it’s still a lot better than those (notably no electric guitar was used on the record, which does give it nicely stripped back feeling). If country pop or even acoustic pop a la Jack Johnson and Jason Mraz really isn’t your thing, then I’d probably give a couple of tracks a listen and skip the rest. It’s still up at Country Weekly so it’s worth taking a listen just to drink in some of the better party songs, but the opportunity Love and Theft had to make a deep record with strong storytelling has gone. And I’m beginning to wonder if I overestimated them.
